


putting the pieces together

by torigates



Category: Pink Carnation Series - Lauren Willig
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-04
Updated: 2013-11-04
Packaged: 2017-12-31 12:15:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1031614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/torigates/pseuds/torigates
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Letty was horribly, violently ill three days straight before she first realised she might be pregnant.</p>
            </blockquote>





	putting the pieces together

 

 

  
Letty was horribly, violently ill three days straight before she first realised she might be pregnant. Henrietta was over on the third day, and the two of them were sitting in the parlor, tea and biscuits laid out in front of them.

She put her hand to her forehead, and clutched the armrest on her chair, as a sudden bout of dizziness overtook her.

“Letty?” Henrietta asked, a note of concern in her voice. “Are you all right?”

Letty nodded, or tried to. The room was spinning a bit violently. She was going to be sick. With her hands pressed over her mouth, Letty ran from the room and was quickly, and loudly sick in the other room.

When she emerged, Hen was holding a glass of water. Letty took it from her gratefully and sipped it slowly. “Do you need me to call a doctor?” Hen asked.

Letty shook her head and sat back down. Her knees and hands were shaking, and to cover it, she took another sip of water. “No,” she said when she could trust her voice. “I’m fine, I think.”

“Are you sure?” Hen asked she was still hovering by Letty’s shoulder, as if Letty would fall apart if Henrietta moved more than an arm’s distance away from her. “That didn’t sound fine.”

She smiled wanly. “It didn’t _feel_ fine either, to be honest,” she admitted. “I think I’m coming down with something.” She paused. “Either that or--”

“Or?” Hen prompted when she didn’t say anything else.

Letty looked at her with wide eyes. The idea hadn’t occurred to her until just now, but of course there was another, entirely different possibility.

“No,” Henrietta said slowly. “Are you?”

“I don’t know,” Letty said. The room was spinning again, this time for very different reasons. “Of course, it’s possible. I just hadn’t thought about it. I mean we hadn’t planned for it. I--” she broke off again.

“Breathe, Letty,” Hen said with a smile.

Letty did. “What do I do?” she asked.

“Well,” Hen said, drawing out the word as if she was formulating a plan (and knowing Henrietta, she likely was). “When did you last bleed?”

Letty thought about it for a moment. “It must be...” she trailed off. “It must be more than six weeks ago.”

Henrietta smiled.

“Oh,” Letty said, and put a hand over her stomach. “What will I tell Geoff?”

“I rather think you should tell him he’s going to be a father,” Hen said.

Letty put her hand to her cheek and held it there.

+

In the end Henrietta convinced her to see a doctor, and their suspicions are confirmed. Letty thanked the doctor and sat in the parlor waiting for Geoff to come home. She didn’t know how to feel. Happy, certainly. Overwhelmingly, blindingly happy. But she’s scared too. Not just because _she was going to be a mother_ , but because she had been telling Hen the truth when she said it wasn’t something they had discussed.

Everything between her and Geoff had happened... the way it happened. There was no time to discuss wants or dreams for the future, because up until recently, she hadn’t even hoped he would want to share those things with her. She supposed some part of her always knew this would happen. After all, once a person was married children generally followed. It just wasn’t something she had thought about in relation to _her_.

She heard the door open and shut. “Letty?” Geoff called a moment later.

“In here,” she replied.

He came into the room and smiled at her. She tried to smile back. “What’s wrong?” he asked.

It wasn’t fair that he could do that. Know her so well. Of course there was no question of her telling him, but maybe, if he hadn’t asked point blank Letty would never had the courage.

“I saw the doctor today,” she started cautiously.

He frowned and crossed the room. “Why? Is there anything wrong?” he asked, his concern obvious. Letty felt the strong pull of affection pool in her stomach. She loved this man. She loved him more than anything.

“No,” she said. “Everything is fine. More than fine.” She curled her arms around her protectively and he reached out and touched her face. She leaned into his touch.

“Tell me,” he said.

Tears pricked her eyes and she smiled. “You’re going to be a father.”

He stared at her for several long moments without speaking. Without blinking. His hand was still on her cheek, and she reached up and curled her fingers around his wrist. “Geoff?” she asked.

“Say it again,” he said and his voice cracked.

“You’re going to be a father,” she repeated. “I’m pregnant.”

A wide smile broke across his face, his other hand coming up to frame her face. “You’re pregnant?” he asked.

She nodded. “I am.”

“I want to kiss you,” he said. “Can I kiss you?”

She nodded again, and tears leaked out the corner of her eyes and spilled down the side of her face. He wiped them away with his thumbs and leaned in to kiss her on the mouth. It was slow and sweet, and she opened her lips when he snaked his tongue across them. His hands moved from her face, one settling on her waist, the other on her knee, as he pulled her too him, and the two of them went toppling off the chair on onto the floor. She landed on his chest, and he laughed into her mouth.

His arms curled around behind her waist, and at that moment she didn’t care that they were lying on the floor where anyone could walk in and see them. She didn’t care that only moments earlier she had been almost sick with worry, she didn’t care about anything other than Geoff’s hands on her back and his lips on her neck and the fluttering in her stomach that was too soon to be anything other than butterflies but that would someday soon be so much more than that.


End file.
